Decatur Republican Blog

2010-09-04T14:18:00.001-05:00

Phil Hare Is Starting To Panic

2010-09-03T09:25:00.006-05:00

According to redstate.com, Phil Hare is behind in the polls for his seat, a whopping 45%-32%! Evidently he doesn't like the fact that Bobby Schilling and all the rest of us would prefer a representative who understands and supports the U.S. Constitution.

And this wasn't the first time he's had 'bad press.'

2010-07-31T13:59:00.001-05:00

Kagan To Be Disbarred?

2010-07-30T20:28:00.002-05:00

Papers have been prepared and are being filed to bring to light ethics violations that could lead to disbarment and a possible criminal indictment for Obama's Supreme Court nominee.

"Larry Klayman, founder of Judicial Watch and Freedom Watch USA, is bringing the complaint, alleging Kagan altered an official scientific report used as evidence by the Supreme Court to persuade the justices to overturn bans on partial-birth abortion."

Read the complete story here.

Las Vegas Hotel Owner Gets It Right - Steve Wynn on Obama

2010-07-29T14:13:00.002-05:00

7 Lies In Under Two Minutes!

2010-07-26T17:33:00.002-05:00

2010-07-15T08:43:00.002-05:00

2010-07-15T08:30:00.002-05:00

2010-07-13T23:28:00.000-05:00

2010-07-13T23:25:00.001-05:00

Obama and the death of Sen. Robert Byrd

2010-06-29T09:18:00.002-05:00

Here's one for you:

According to the White House's blog, President Obama made these remarks concerning former grand dragon of the Klu Klux Klan, Sen. Robert Byrd, who passed away early yesterday:

I was saddened to hear this morning that the people of West Virginia have lost a true champion, the United States Senate has lost a venerable institution, and America has lost a voice of principle and reason with the passing of Robert C. Byrd.

Senator Byrd’s story was uniquely American. He was born into wrenching poverty, but educated himself to become an authoritative scholar, respected leader, and unparalleled champion of our Constitution. He scaled the summit of power, but his mind never strayed from the people of his beloved West Virginia. He had the courage to stand firm in his principles, but also the courage to change over time.

He was as much a part of the Senate as the marble busts that line its chamber and its corridors. His profound passion for that body and its role and responsibilities was as evident behind closed doors as it was in the stemwinders he peppered with history. He held the deepest respect of members of both parties, and he was generous with his time and advice, something I appreciated greatly as a young senator.

We take solace in the fact that he is reunited with his wife of nearly 69 years, Erma; and our thoughts and prayers are with their daughters, their grandchildren and great grandchildren, and all the people of West Virginia who loved Robert C. Byrd.

As some of you may recall, former Sen. Trent Lott said something nice about then 100-year-old Senator Strom Thurmond, and was forced to resign from his Senate leadership position.

Granted, Thurmond WAS an avowed segregationist. He was also a fiscal conservative, and a "Dixiecrat" turned Republican. Not someone I would agree with very often, but some who had served the US Senate for many years, was the oldest person to have served in the Senate, and had many accomplishments since his days as a presidential candidate in the 1960s.

Now our president lauds a former KKK grand dragon, someone who likewise fought civil rights legislation, and he calls the guy "a voice of principle and reason" and "a venerable institution"?!?! He also said he had "the courage to stand firm in his principles, but also the courage to change over time."

By rights, President Obama should follow Trent Lott's example and resign now since he made supportive statements of a ?"former"? racist, thus making him racist and therefore unfit. Someone should call the ACLU. Right?

I guess Mr. Byrd was not a "typical white person."

2010-06-23T17:50:00.001-05:00

Phil Hare is Illinois' Most Beatable Congressman

2010-05-07T21:44:00.003-05:00

According to the National Review Online, Phil Hare is Illinois' Most Beatable Congressman.

Who will be the tortoise that can beat this Hare?

Whoever it is will surely campaign on how much he DOES CARE about the US Constitution!

Why Exactly Does Blago Want To Subpoena Obama?

2010-04-24T01:08:00.008-05:00

I ran across this copy of the motion filed 4/22/10 by Hot Rod Blagojevich (D-IL) former governor of Illinois in an attempt to subpoena President Barack Hussein Obama, former US Senator (D-IL) with regard to the almost ebaY-type sale of the former US Senator's senate seat.

There are numerous spots blacked out in the pdf copy of the motion, so the meat of what was being said we won't know about for years, BUT....from what you can make out--this does not look good for the President AT ALL.

Methinks Rod is not as nutty as we all have portrayed him; methinks his unfading confidence of his "innocence" may be based in the belief that B.O. will not want to let any stink of this situation get out in all of it's gory detail and would therefore do whatever it takes to help Rod beat the rap.

So...how soon does the Freedom of Information Act apply to all of this? ;-)

Huge Sweeping Republican Takeover of Congress Coming !!!

2010-03-21T22:42:00.004-05:00

After ObamaCare got passed today, the 70+ percent of Americans who did NOT want this bill will remember who did not listen to the will of the people. There will be a huge landslide in November 2010, AND in November 2012!!

We will vote you out, sleazeballs who bribe congressmen to vote for something their constituents did NOT want!

2010-01-30T17:00:00.009-06:00

State of the Union 1/27/2010

2010-01-27T20:02:00.002-06:00

As I have done once before with President George W. Bush, tonight I will blog on President Barack H. Obama's SOTU speech as I hear it live.

8:05 PM Still waiting.

8:06 PM BHO hi-fiving and shaking hands and hugging people. (Michelle looks a little stern.)

8:07 PM (on FoxNews) Sarah Palin discussing/shredding Obama and his "leftist views."

8:10 PM Nancy Pelosi's hair looks flat tonight.

8:11 PM Nancy "Botox" Pelosi announces the Prez.

8:12 PM Obama starts...
Obama gives a colorful rendition on the history of the SOTU.
Yeah, yeah, yeah we know we've been through a lot.
Vain attempts at trying to substantiate the "stimulus" (porkulus) addition to the national deficit.
He thinks we all look to government to solve all our problems? Uh....no, BHO. It's called personal responsibility. In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem. Government IS the problem.

8:15 PM He says he's not been more hopeful about America's future than he is tonight. Oh boy. Why are you soft on national defense? Why are you Mirandizing enemy combatant terrorists? Ugh.

8:19 PM He's blaming the banks for causing the "financial crisis." What about Barney Frank and Chris Dodd? He says he hated the bank bailouts....I think he likes his control over the banks. No, BHO, you have no viable way of quantifying the "jobs saved" etc., that you purport. It's all a load of "hooey."

8:20 PM Now he wants to further punish the banks by fining them! He says they have the ability to pay out big bonuses, so they should have the money to pay him fines....hmmm. How much money did the US Gov't (Pelosi, Reed, et al and their entourage) spend on the vacation to Copenhagen? MILLIONS for NOTHING! Oh boy.

8:21 PM Cut taxes 25 times? Really? Where? Significantly? or just marginally Mr. President? (I'd like to see the figures on this.) The trouble is, he's going to raise taxes exponentially with the expiration of the Bush tax cuts let alone what may come with the Health Care crap if it passes. He will punish anyone or any business making more than $250,000. That's just about every business in the country!!!

8:22 PM He's saved jobs?!?! How in the world can you claim this with UNEMPLOYMENT HAS REACHED OVER TEN PERCENT! That's an increase, not a decrease! What a load!

8:23 PM Recovery Act Stories....stories indeed. A few people who praise socialism.

8:24 PM Calling for a new jobs bill? Once he raises taxes (as promised) there will be no way businesses will be able to hire anyone.

8:25 PM Small businesses are the key. Right, BHO, but the way to allow small businesses to make it in this economy is to lower taxes for them AND larger businesses AND everyone else in the country....and stop punishing the banks. He's taking money that was borrowed, then lent to banks, then paid back to the government, and now he's going to lend it other banks so they can lend it out again? What are the strings on these loans, BHO? That's not money you can loan, that should be money you should pay off!!

8:28 PM He's funding a "hi-speed" railroad?!?!? Holy Crap! Amtrak is broke and has been since it's conception (another failed bailout.) This will be a big waste of money, people.

8:29 PM Tax breaks. Wow, he sounds like Bush. Wish they were more comprehensive.

8:30 PM "The only way to move to full employment is to lay a foundation to long term economic growth." Duh...it's called tax breaks for all of us. Kind of like the Bush taxcuts. What a concept.

8:31 PM China isn't waiting to improve their own economy. Uh...they don't have the restrictions we do, the "green" initiatives, the EPA, etc. Nor do they pay their workers a living wage. They are a communist nation where the people live in squalor while the "Party" lives in luxury. Kind of like you and me vs. Pelosi/Obama in Copenhagen.

8:33 PM He says that since banks were the cause of the financial crisis that he should control the banks so this won't happen again. The trouble is, the DNC (Clinton, Dodd, Frank) caused the financial crisis through pressured risky loans, therefore we should control THEIR access to power.

8:35 PM Energy stuff. He still hasn't said anything about expanding drilling to lessen our dependency on foreign oil. Non-fossil fuel stuff is great, but it can't be the only thing, and definitely not now when our economy is in the crapper. Climate change isn't a crisis. We can be better stewards of our resources, but spending a gazillion dollars on pipedream stuff like this NOW instead of cutting spending is ludicrous.

8:39 PM We only reward success (education stuff.) Not in California you don't. If you want a world class education, get it out of the hands of the government!! The last thing we need to do is throw more money at our failing public schools (failing not because of lack of resources, but because of lack of morals and a lack of common sense.) I do like increasing tax credits for those financing their kids education.

8:43 PM He's going to forgive educational debts after twenty years? So, all I have to do is pay the minimum payment and keep kite-ing the debt until the 20 years is up? How does he define "public service?" ACORN? Planned Parenthood? Oh boy.

8:45 PM He says Health Insurance Reform is essential to middle class families' financial crisis. Uh...no. BHO, we've know what Saul Alinksy wrote, and we know what you're up to. Everyone on a Medicare-type insurance is NOT progress. Bankrupting insurance companies is not progress. Government control is not progress. Rationing care would bring down the deficit by 2 trillion over the next 20 years, yes, but only because you'd deny care to seniors!!! BHO, you've increased the deficit by more than that in the last year since you took office!!! Our health care system is not that bad off!! You're attempting to scare people into voting for this. Doctors think this is better? Not according to the masses who are not in the AMA leadership! Let's remove the barriers to affordable PRIVATE insurance not bash the insurance companies into bankruptcy so the government can conveniently take over.

8:50 PM Health care reform (raising taxes to increase entitlements) will not help the economy. It will only hurt it.

8:51 PM Blaming Bush for everything. He's blaming Bush for HIS DEFICIT SPENDING! What a load of crap! Now he says he wants to reign in HIS SPENDING! Now come the tax increases. He's going to freeze gov't spending for three years starting in 2011. Not a bad thought; I'd take a look at what you're spending stuff on NOW and reform HOW YOU SPEND before you reform what you spend. The biggest portion of the porkulus bill was NOT stimulating anything, but rather PORK. Hippocrites the whole way!!

8:55 PM Still blaming Bush for DNC mistakes. "Common sense." Get the Dems out of office, that sounds like common sense. We face a deficit of trust. Yes, especially with leftist communists. "It'll be on CSPAN." "The unemployment rate won't go over 8 percent."

8:57 PM He just bashed the Supreme Court. "I don't think elections should be bank-rolled by special interests." Uh....BHO, where did that 600 million come from you got for your campaign? How much did George Soros REALLY give you? Earmark reform? Take a look at the Porkulus package!!! How can you say you want earmark reform when your administration has been the biggest producer of earmarks since time began?!?!!?!?

9:00 PM He wants the GOP to stop campaigning, although half of what he's said tonight is propaganda for his party and almost all of his public appearances, speeches, etc., has been a huge campaign for himself and his leftist agenda. Politics stops progress? Uh, no, socialism, communism and a leftist agenda will rob every American of their rights, our guns, our freedom in general. "Saying no isn't leadership." That was Pelosi's mantra when GWB was in office!! The party of NO, remember? What a crock! BHO, if we think you're on the wrong track, we will not allow you to run us into socialism.

9:05 PM Cracking down on terrorism? Mirandizing them is NOT cracking down. (By the way, the H&R had a headline stating that BHO has CONTINUED THE INTELLIGENCE POLICIES OF BUSH!!! Check it out.)

9:07 PM He's going to end the war. All combat troops out of Iraq by August. Did you hear that Al Qaeda? Achmadinijad, get your troops ready for an invasion in late August or early September! I'd choose September 1st. It would be only fitting that the appeasement of Chamberlain that led to the Nazis invading Poland on September 1, 1939 would be "honored" by Iran invading Iraq under the blessing of BHO's appeasement of Islamofascists and the left-wing blogs. You heard it hear first!

9:10 PM He wants to have control over all the nuclear weapons in the world (or at least know where they are.) Uh....security breach for us? What country is going to let the world know where it's nukes are so their enemies know where to aim theirs? Not sound judgment...unless....

Sounds like when Nicolae Carpathia got control over all the worlds nukes, doesn't it?

9:14 PM It took him over an hour to even mention Haiti. "America must always stand on the side of freedom and human dignity." Except when it's not politically expedient; then we get the troops out by August.

9:14 PM What are "common values?" How does one define them? WHO defines them? "Hate Crime legislation" is only a gag on free speech. Gays in the military? The joint chiefs scowled big time. He wants to secure our borders?!?!? I thought the dems wanted all the illegals for themselves?!?

9:15 PM I think I just saw a camera shot of the TOTUS. I'll have to scan back later and make sure.

9:17 PM TV pundits....I'm sure Hannity and Beck are feeling very proud right now.

9:18 PM "I can't do change alone." No, you can't, and you won't. We don't want socialism and we will not allow you to push it through. Socialism is NOT what the next generation needs.

"...they fought on even when success wasn't assured." No, they fought on because of what they believed in: Judeo-Christian values. They DID HAVE a guarantee that if they believed and fought for what was right in the eyes of God, that God would honor His Word and bless them. In your reality, you are asking us to put our faith in socialism and Obamunism; there is not guarantee there will be blessings; in fact, history has proven that socialism fails wherever and whenever it has been tried. Therefore you will not get the unity you want.

9:20 PM The speech is finally over. All in all I still believe he is an excellent speaker; unfortunately his "facts" are mostly opinion, and his conclusions about the future are based on HIS view of socialistic expansion of government and a tightening of control over banks, education, the economy, and the phony global warming crapola. He blames Bush for all of his troubles, and greatly exaggerated "successes" of his porkulus bill. He scolded the Supreme Court on national TV for their recent decision on campaign contributions from businesses!!! Whoa! (I find it laughable that he talks about campaign reform when HE took over $600 million from unknown donor(s.)

He's given the GOP and every other non-DNC candidate a wealth of quotes and quips for many campaigns to come.

9:30 PM GOP rebuttal from Gov. McConnell from Virginia. He praised BHO for putting Jobs as a number one priority. He quotes Jefferson's words on Laissez-Faire. He points out BHO's every-increasing spending and debt increases but thinks the spending freeze is a good first step, but it's too little. Government needs to be smaller as the excessive growth of government threatens out prosperity.

No Obamacare; no big bills made behind closed doors. Simple reforms to allow insurance purchases across state lines. Tort reform as part of HCR.

Offshore drilling! WOW! Nice addition to an energy policy! No CAP and TAX; expand nuclear, expand drilling.

Education: Yes to vouchers, more scrutiny on teachers.

Defense: No to cutting and running out of Iraq so Mahmoud can have his larger Iran. No Mirandizing of enemy combatants; no spending of money to defend terrorists, just to defeat them.

Socialism: No to control over banks, companies, lending, automobile makers, etc. Free enterprise and liberty. Government close to the people governs best. No government program can match our own compassion for the people in Haiti. He quoted scripture!! "To whom much is given, much is required." (And no, that's not a quote of Uncle Ben from Spiderman, that's Luke 12:48 that Uncle Ben quoted to Peter Parker!)

9:42 PM He's gone over the ten minutes he promised his sons. A strong response filled with specific reasons why BHO can't have his unity; there is a fundamental difference between the philosophy of governing between the truly democratic fundamentals of conservatism vs. the heavy-handed iron-fisted control and uncompromising rule that the Obama socialism requires.

We need to choose people. Do we want socialism, or do we want conservatism? Let's follow the example of the people of Massachusetts and vote the leftists out!

Proof that the CURRENT Senate Bill DOES MANDATE TAX-PAYER FUNDED ABORTION!!!

2009-12-23T19:48:00.000-06:00

And they're going to vote on this tomorrow...

When the biggest majority of the nation celebrates the BIRTH of the Saviour of the world, the democrats will be touting a bill that has us taxpayers paying for ABORTIONS!

Durbin must go!

Our Nation Created, Our Nation Destroyed

2009-12-22T10:41:00.003-06:00

(An article by Susan Dale, who incidently spends most of her time as a financial advisor.)

A group of men, from disparate parts of the American colonies, from varying levels of society and with quite different temperaments and opinions, came together in the late 18th Century to create a nation.

What they achieved was a mixture of the ideas of the philosophies of 17th and 18th Century France, the examples of freedoms gained at certain periods in British history, and some quite radical theories on the freedom of man that came from our own home grown thinkers.

Nothing like it had ever been done in the history of the world.

It was a time for excitement, for fear, for resolve, for imagination, for determination, for daring, yet feelings remained mixed as the majority of these men hoped to the end, i.e., the beginning of the Revolutionary War, that reconciliation with the mother country could still be achieved. Even after the war had started, meetings of the rebels would automatically conclude, as in so many past years, with their raising their glasses for a rousing toast of “God Save the King.”

It was undoubtedly the greatest confluence of minds, both thinkers from past centuries, like Charles Henri de Montesquieu, to those of the time who were espousing freedom from tyranny, like Thomas Paine, to have ever come together in history. All the ideas and concepts put forth by these thinkers, writers, philosophers and political agitators were thoroughly discussed and encapsulated into the timeless documents creating the United States of America that survive and provide the rules for the governance of our nation to this day.

Entire article is here on humanevents.com.

The True Meaning of Christmas

2009-12-22T10:39:00.001-06:00

The Red Tide of 2010

2009-11-24T20:23:00.001-06:00

As emailed to me:

Hugh Hewitt: The red tide of 2010
By: Hugh Hewitt
Examiner Columnist
November 23, 2009

Bob Dylan has a Christmas album, "Christmas in the Heart."

Which must mean that 1.) all things are possible and 2.) strange things are certain.

Excellent reminders as the real debate on Obamacare gets under way.

Saturday night's vote to allow opening arguments in the Senate was great news for Gilbert Baker, front-running GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in Arkansas. Democratic incumbent Blanche Lincoln can only survive the inevitable red tide of 2010 if she is on the right side of the "Stop Obamacare" debate, but she whiffed in her first at-bat.

She missed the chance to declare her genuine moderation to an Arkansas electorate that wants no part of the Reid-Schumer-Boxer leadership elite that has served up Obamacare and cap and tax.

When Sen. Lincoln voted with every other Democrat against every other Republican, she wrote the opening line in every Baker speech from now until November 2010: "I am running because when it came down to a choice between Chicago and Arkansas, Blanche Lincoln chose Chicago."

Lincoln can still rewrite the script, and some shrewd observers see her setting up a dramatic break with the majority in early 2010 when, after the holidays have passed and the attention of the country is focused on the Senate, she will refuse to allow Obamacare to proceed and fix in her electorate's mind a sharply defined portrait of courage and independence.

Perhaps, but in the meantime, Baker will be certain to be campaigning on Saturday night's vote.

As will GOP Senate candidates in California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania and of course Nevada. Obamacare is poison for the country's medical delivery system, but it is reviving the GOP's fortunes faster than any magic brew. So determined are the Democratic congressional majorities to wreck themselves on the deeply unpopular power grab that Republican fundraising is taking off like a rocket.

Rep. Pete Sessions of the National Republican Congressional Committee unveiled ReversetheVote.org on Tuesday afternoon, and by Sunday thousands of small donors had contributed more than $100,000 to the effort to defeat the 24 most vulnerable House Democrats who voted for Obamacare on Nov. 7.

If Obamacare survives the Senate and returns for one more vote in the House, those 24 will have to think long and hard about what sort of political suicide note they are being asked to sign. The more momentum such an outreach gains, and similar ones such as that run by TalkPac.com targeting vulnerable Democratic senators up next November, the more fertilized are the "green shoots" of the Republican revival by the massive tax increases and deep Medicare cuts embedded in Obamacare.

The proposed massive cuts and embedded rationing being moved along on pork-greased tracks are profoundly rebranding the new president and his congressional allies as not just from the hard-Left edge of the American political spectrum, but as untrustworthy as well, given the scores of promises broken to get this far.

Another worrying sign for Democrats is in the new grass-roots organization Docs4PatientCare.org. This past weekend, hundreds of doctors and health care professionals, supported by thousands of their patients, rallied in cities from Atlanta to Los Angeles to publicize the awful consequences for the doctor-patient relationship if Obamacare passes.

The American Medical Association has joined AARP as the most discredited organizations of 2009, and in the wake of their collapse of credibility, new and improved substitute organizations dedicated to their original but now abandoned missions are self-organizing.

The news of the proposed rewrite of the rules of American medicine is still very much in the delivery stage. Seniors especially are only beginning to grasp what a half-trillion dollars in cuts will mean over the balance of what they had thought would be their golden years but which, if Obamacare passes, will instead be the "give-us-your-gold" years.

Side deals like Sen. Mary Landrieu's, D-La., yes vote in exchange for $300 million -- the new "Louisiana Purchase" -- are the sort of squalid Beltway exchanges that will not be forgotten. Democrats who tell themselves that the worst is over are deluding themselves.

Though Obamacare's fate is still very much up in the air, the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., have guaranteed that its effect will already be profound and lasting. The only thing that remains to be seen is whether it leads to a historic and completely unexpected anti-Obama/Democrat realignment in 49 weeks.

A year ago, that seemed as unlikely as a Dylan Christmas album.

Obama and Government Waste

2009-11-23T09:49:00.002-06:00

No, we're not talking about Health Care Reform or Cap and Tax, we're talking about First Lady Michelle Obama.

In a time when unemployment is at the highest since Clinton was in office, when banks are failing and our president says to just "take a pill and don't have surgery," the First Lady goes out and blows our money like no other first lady in history.

Check out the full article on the Canada Free Press website

The following is the list of people attending to the First Lady and their respective salaries. How many did the Bush administration employ? 1. How many did Clinton? 3

How many does Obama? 22!!

Government waste at it's best; and hypocrisy. Joseph Stalin's family never had to live like peasants either.

1. $172,2000 - Sher, Susan (CHIEF OF STAFF)
2. $140,000 - Frye, Jocelyn C. (DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR OF POLICY AND PROJECTS FOR THE FIRST LADY)
3. $113,000 - Rogers, Desiree G. (SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND WHITE HOUSE SOCIAL SECRETARY)
4. $102,000 - Johnston, Camille Y. (SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS FOR THE FIRST LADY)
5. Winter, Melissa E. (SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF TO THE FIRST LADY)
6. $90,000 - Medina, David S. (DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF TO THE FIRST LADY)
7. $84,000 - Lelyveld, Catherine M. (DIRECTOR AND PRESS SECRETARY TO THE FIRST LADY)
8. $75,000 - Starkey, Frances M. (DIRECTOR OF SCHEDULING AND ADVANCE FOR THE FIRST LADY)
9. $70,000 - Sanders, Trooper (DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF POLICY AND PROJECTS FOR THE FIRST LADY)
10. $65,000 - Burnough, Erinn J. (DEPUTY DIRECTOR AND DEPUTY SOCIAL SECRETARY)
11. Reinstein, Joseph B. (DEPUTY DIRECTOR AND DEPUTY SOCIAL SECRETARY)
12. $62,000 - Goodman, Jennifer R. (DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF SCHEDULING AND EVENTS COORDINATOR FOR THE FIRST LADY)
13. $60,000 - Fitts, Alan O. (DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ADVANCE AND TRIP DIRECTOR FOR THE FIRST LADY)
14. Lewis, Dana M. (SPECIAL ASSISTANT AND PERSONAL AIDE TO THE FIRST LADY)
15. $52,500 - Mustaphi, Semonti M. (ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR AND DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY TO THE FIRST LADY)
16. $50,000 - Jarvis, Kristen E. (SPECIAL ASSISTANT FOR SCHEDULING AND TRAVELING AIDE TO THE FIRST LADY)
17. $45,000 - Lechtenberg, Tyler A. (ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE FIRST LADY)
18. Tubman, Samantha (DEPUTY ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR,SOCIAL OFFICE)
19. $40,000 - Boswell, Joseph J. (EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT TO THE CHIEF OF STAFF TO THE FIRST LADY)
20. $36,000 - Armbruster, Sally M. (STAFF ASSISTANT TO THE SOCIAL SECRETARY)
21. Bookey, Natalie (STAFF ASSISTANT)
22. Jackson, Deilia A. (DEPUTY ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE FIRST LADY)

The end of democracy is near...

2009-11-06T21:45:00.004-06:00

Tomorrow's vote on the health-care "reform" bill will be a turning point in American history. If this socialist fiasco gets made into law, our current economic problems will pale in comparison to what is ahead. As the current health care system unravels, the unemployment rate will skyrocket. St. Mary's and Decatur Memorial depend on money reimbursed by insurance companies; when those companies fail, so will the quality of health care available to us all as both of our local hospitals will have to lay off many of their workers. Medicare and Medicaid will not be able to make up the difference.

When people are unemployed, they don't buy much. Grocery stores, retail stores, gasoline stations all will be hit hard. Prices will go up all around while shop owners attempt to recoup their losses from falling sales. Soon those stores will start to lay off workers, or even close.

Many health care workers will likely quit their jobs, especially doctors, nurses, and pharmacists. Why? Because 'Right of Conscience' will have been eliminated from the US Department of Human Services rulebook. No longer will health care professionals be able to respectfully refuse to participate in abortion, euthanasia, pro-homosexual counseling or any other procedure or prescription that they personally or religiously feel they cannot participate in. With HR 3926, these professionals would face losing their license if they didn't participate. Many have said they would rather quit their job than be forced to do something that would violate their conscience. When they're gone, who will fill their shoes?

More importantly, where will patients go once these professionals quit? Waiting lists will form as people wait to be able to find a doctor. People will have to wait months to get a CAT scan or MRI, even longer to see a specialist or have an operation. Seniors will see care rationed; those who the government thinks are too big a risk will be denied care altogether. No knee replacements after 70 if Nancy Pelosi thinks it's not worth it. Meanwhile, taxpayer money will pay for abortion on demand and sex-change operations, even in foreign countries.

Is this the USA we want? Is this the socialist hellhole that is the "hope and change" promised by our president? I certainly hope not.

It can be avoided, but only if you, the citizens of Decatur make your voices heard. Call your US representatives and senators today and tell them to vote NO on this horrendous bill. Stop the socialists now before it is too late. Once they wreck our economy and take over more and more business, we will no longer be citizens of the United States of America, but Comrades to the Unites Socialist States of Amerika.

Pray now more than ever

The Globe Is Cooling

2009-10-10T13:53:00.002-05:00

Link forwarded from a friend.

As predicted by many notable scientists, and reported by Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, et al, the globe is cooling.

Read it for yourself.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8299079.stm

Then, please tell all your friends and neighbors. Get the message out that we do NOT want higher taxes to pay for projects based on junk science!!!

Nobel Peace Prize?!?

2009-10-09T09:11:00.003-05:00

I would love for our local libs to please list for me the accomplishments of Barack Hussein Obama that qualify him as a Nobel laureate.

What has he done?

Increase the deficit by trillions by his "stimulus" (all Pork)
Increase taxes
Under-equip the military, esp. in Afghanistan
Made America look weak by apologizing to everyone on the planet
Waste time on Chicago's Olympic bid while ignoring his military commanders on active duty

To sum it up: He's killing our country off. Perhaps that's why they think there'll be peace. We won't have the strength to defend ourselves.

The Monster Mash

2009-10-06T17:44:00.002-05:00

courtesy of JibJab, characters added/edited by me.

Now this IS scary.

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Another Example of Totalitarianism

2009-09-08T19:21:00.004-05:00

What particularly irks me about the Democrats is their never-ending drive to keep the populace totally dependent on government. Now, if you choose to not be dependent on them, they're going to FINE YOU.

Check out this story:

Fines proposed for going without health insurance (AP)

What's next--fine us for not wearing clean underwear?

The Ever-Increasing Fascist State

2009-08-06T21:07:00.003-05:00

As a student of history, one of the lessons I learned quite a while ago was that if we do not learn from the mistakes made in history, we are doomed to repeat them. Take for example, Nazi Germany. Hitler Youth, massive propaganda campaigns, squashing of resistance (the night of the long knives is coming for us, too, if we do not act!) and disinformation.

Here's a link to another blog called "Sweetness & Light." Check out the similarities between what Nancy Pelosi says about those who protest her and Obama's agenda, and what Obama has done with healthcare reform!!.

LINK: www.sweetness-light.com

I can see it now: "Papers please! Where are your papers?"

A Psychological Profile of B. Hussein Obama

2009-07-05T19:19:00.002-05:00

I got a copy of this in my email from a friend. It details the past history of our president, and an possible explanation of his current actions.

It's worth the read.

Check it out here

Abortionist Murder is Worse Than Abortion

2009-06-01T07:11:00.002-05:00

I won't bother to cite any stories in the media; the murder of abortionist George Tiller in Wichita, Kansas yesterday was horrible. It's been reported on by many news agencies.

I won't be long-winded about this. There are several reasons this is horrible.

1) Taking the life of any other human being is murder. Wartime and accidents aside, it's just plain murder. I'm sure the killer somehow justified in his own mind that this was war or 'God told him to do it.' According to scripture, it's murder.

2) Committing murder in the name of Christ is antithetical to the cause of Christianity. A house divided against itself cannot stand. How can Christians be united in our faith when our members do not practice the faith they profess? This problem has been around since Christ's resurrection. Much more of the same doesn't help

3) Committing murder 'in the name of Christ' inside a church simply is probably some of the worst bad publicity the cause of Christianity needs right now. Christians are being attacked at every angle; this only adds fuel to the fire.

In short, two wrongs don't make a right. In this case two wrongs make a larger uphill battle for Christians in the USA. It also has caused the lives of the family and friends of Dr. Tiller to be turned upside down. Pray for them.

Why We Must Spread The Gospel of Jesus Christ

2009-05-25T12:42:00.003-05:00

Memorial Day

2009-05-21T16:01:00.012-05:00

Drivel Detector Installed

2009-05-21T14:23:00.002-05:00

For the time being, I have turned on comment moderation. This is to deter the anonymous "drive-by" drivel shooters from littering posts containing mature, intelligent conversation.

I'm sorry for any inconvenience. I do not censor my blog, but I intend to keep the drivel out.

The Not-So-Slow Descent Into Socialism

2009-02-18T09:04:00.005-06:00

I regret my absence here since the election of B. Hussein Obama. I guess I figured the MSM would cover his majesty's coronation well, and they did. No substance in their reporting, but hey, what would you expect from them?

First, President Obama says he is not going to be divisive "like President Bush was." Then he signs an executive order lifting the ban on federal funding of abortions, not just domestic, but also in foreign countries. I guess if you kill the enemy while they're just millimeters long, it is less messy. If I were in Pakistan, I would be nervous right now.

Then comes the "stimulus bill." What a load of...pork. Limbaugh has deemed it the Porkulus Bill, and I would agree. A lot of spending, no visible means of paying for it, all from the same party that raked Bush over the coals (and justifiably so) for allowing his administration to spend more than it should. I can recall Clinton harping about a "balanced budget" over and over. I guess this is something that B. Hussein Obama considers to be non-essential.

Now, he's wanting to spend billions more to bail out the homeowners who had their homes foreclosed upon because of a lack of ability to pay. Mr. President, it was your party's doing (see Barney Frank, Chris Dodd) who made the banks give out these risky loans in the first place which contributed to the collapse of the banking system, and now you're proposing we foot the bill even more?

The government now has a controlling interest in many large national banks.

The government now has a controlling interest in many large automobile manufacturers.

The government has a growing controlling interest in our tax rates (as in they're going up) while Obama "spreads the wealth around."

Now the government wants a controlling interest in our home ownership.

For all you so-called conservative democrats out there: WAKE UP AND SMELL THE SOCIALISM! Is B. Hussein Obama evil and is this all a hatched plot by him and George Soros to take over the world?

NO. I don't believe it myself. Obama may have good intentions (hey, who wouldn't want everyone to have a home, free health care, stable economy, cheap cars, honest corporate leaders, etc) but his methods are all wrong. FDR tried this in the thirties, and it didn't work. Only WW-II got us out of the great depression. His policies made things worse (see chart below.)

What I fear is that all the while this idealistic inexperienced socialist-inspired president is installing his vain attempts to help us all, the true socialists/communists/autocrats will use these fiascos and their fallout into convincing us that European-style socialism is the only way out.

Germany in the 1930s was in bad shape. Their depression after the Treaty of Versailles was twice as bad as anything we experienced in America after the stock market collapse. All their policies and programs didn't work. The people were desperate. Many voices rang out to help. The one that seemed to be able to offer hope was the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei and their vibrant leader, Adolf Hitler.

Is B. Hussein Obama the "Hitler" here? Of course not. But he could be unwittingly setting us up for a socialist counterpart in the future....if we let him.

And so, to quote Bill O'Reilly, what say you?

Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?

2008-10-29T07:57:00.003-05:00

Originally published 10/9/08 in Greensboro, NC, this article sums it up:

Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?

Orson Scott
The Rhinotimes, Greensboro NC

October 09, 2008
An open letter to the local daily paper -- almost every local daily paper in America:

I remember reading All the President's Men and thinking: That's journalism. You do what it takes to get the truth and you lay it before the public, because the public has a right to know.

This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration.

It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans.

What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely not to be able to repay.

The goal of this rule change was to help the poor -- which especially would help members of minority groups. But how does it help these people to give them a loan that they can't repay? They get into a house, yes, but when they can't make the payments, they lose the house â€“ along with their credit rating.

They end up worse off than before.

This was completely foreseeable and in fact many people did foresee it. One political party, in Congress and in the executive branch, tried repeatedly to tighten up the rules. The other party blocked every such attempt and tried to loosen them.

Furthermore, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were making political contributions to the very members of Congress who were allowing them to make irresponsible loans. (Though why quasi-federal agencies were allowed to do so baffles me. It's as if the Pentagon were allowed to contribute to the political campaigns of congressmen who support increasing their budget.)

Isn't there a story here? Doesn't journalism require that you who produce our daily paper tell the truth about who brought us to a position where the only way to keep confidence in our economy was a $700 billion bailout? Aren't you supposed to follow the money and see which politicians were benefiting personally from the deregulation of mortgage lending?

I have no doubt that if these facts had pointed to the Republican Party or to John McCain as the guilty parties, you would be treating it as a vast scandal. "Housing-gate," no doubt. Or "Fannie-gate."

Instead, it was Sen. Christopher Dodd and Congressman Barney Frank, both Democrats, who denied that there were any problems, who refused Bush administration requests to set up a regulatory agency to watch over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and who were still pushing for these agencies to go even further in promoting subprime mortgage loans almost up to the minute they failed.

As Thomas Sowell points out in a TownHall.com essay entitled "Do Facts Matter?" (http://snipurl.com/457to): "Alan Greenspan warned them four years ago. So did the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers to the President. So did Bush's Secretary of the Treasury."

These are facts. This financial crisis was completely preventable. The party that blocked any attempt to prevent it was ... the Democratic Party. The party that tried to prevent it was ... the Republican Party.

Yet when Nancy Pelosi accused the Bush administration and Republican deregulation of causing the crisis, you in the press did not hold her to account for her lie. Instead, you criticized Republicans who took offense at this lie and refused to vote for the bailout!

What? It's not the liar, but the victims of the lie who are to blame?

Now let's follow the money ... right to the presidential candidate who is the number two recipient of campaign contributions from Fannie Mae.

And after Franklin Raines, the CEO of Fannie Mae who made $90 million while running it into the ground, was fired for his incompetence, one presidential candidate's campaign actually consulted him for advice on housing.

If that presidential candidate had been John McCain, you would have called it a major scandal and we would be getting stories in your paper every day about how incompetent and corrupt he was.

But instead, that candidate was Barack Obama, and so you have buried this story, and when the McCain campaign dared to call Raines an "adviser" to the Obama campaign â€“ because that campaign had sought his advice â€“ you actually let Obama's people get away with accusing McCain of lying, merely because Raines wasn't listed as an official adviser to the Obama campaign.

You would never tolerate such weasely nit-picking from a Republican.

If you who produce our local daily paper actually had any principles, you would be pounding this story, because the prosperity of all Americans was put at risk by the foolish, short-sighted, politically selfish and possibly corrupt actions of leading Democrats, including Obama.

If you who produce our local daily paper had any personal honor, you would find it unbearable to let the American people believe that somehow Republicans were to blame for this crisis.

There are precedents. Even though President Bush and his administration never said that Iraq sponsored or was linked to 9/11, you could not stand the fact that Americans had that misapprehension -- so you pounded us with the fact that there was no such link. (Along the way, you created the false impression that Bush had lied to them and said that there was a connection.)

If you had any principles, then surely right now, when the American people are set to blame President Bush and John McCain for a crisis they tried to prevent, and are actually shifting to approve of Barack Obama because of a crisis he helped cause, you would be laboring at least as hard to correct that false impression.

Your job, as journalists, is to tell the truth. That's what you claim you do, when you accept people's money to buy or subscribe to your paper.

But right now, you are consenting to or actively promoting a big fat lie -- that the housing crisis should somehow be blamed on Bush, McCain and the Republicans. You have trained the American people to blame everything bad â€“ even bad weather -- on Bush, and they are responding as you have taught them to.

If you had any personal honor, each reporter and editor would be insisting on telling the truth -- even if it hurts the election chances of your favorite candidate.

Because that's what honorable people do. Honest people tell the truth even when they don't like the probable consequences. That's what honesty means. That's how trust is earned.

Barack Obama is just another politician, and not a very wise one. He has revealed his ignorance and naivete time after time -- and you have swept it under the rug, treated it as nothing.

Meanwhile, you have participated in the borking of Sarah Palin, reporting savage attacks on her for the pregnancy of her unmarried daughter -- while you ignored the story of John Edwards' own adultery for many months.

So I ask you now: Do you have any standards at all? Do you even know what honesty means?

Is getting people to vote for Barack Obama so important that you will throw away everything that journalism is supposed to stand for?

You might want to remember the way the National Organization of Women (NOW) threw away their integrity by supporting Bill Clinton despite his well-known pattern of sexual exploitation of powerless women. Who listens to NOW anymore? We know they stand for nothing; they have no principles.

That's where you are right now.

It's not too late. You know that if the situation were reversed, and the truth would damage McCain and help Obama, you would be moving heaven and earth to get the true story out there.

If you want to redeem your honor, you will swallow hard and make a list of all the stories you would print if it were McCain who had been getting money from Fannie Mae, McCain whose campaign had consulted with its discredited former CEO, McCain who had voted against tightening its lending practices.

Then you will print them, even though every one of those true stories will point the finger of blame at the reckless Democratic Party, which put our nation's prosperity at risk so they could feel good about helping the poor, and lay a fair share of the blame at Obama's door.

You will also tell the truth about John McCain: that he tried, as a senator, to do what it took to prevent this crisis. You will tell the truth about President Bush: that his administration tried more than once to get Congress to regulate lending in a responsible way.

This was a Congress-caused crisis, beginning during the Clinton administration, with Democrats leading the way into the crisis and blocking every effort to get out of it in a timely fashion.

If you at our local daily newspaper continue to let Americans believe -- and vote as if -- President Bush and the Republicans caused the crisis, then you are joining in that lie.

If you do not tell the truth about the Democrats -- including Barack Obama -- and do so with the same energy you would use if the miscreants were Republicans -- then you are not journalists by any standard.

You're just the public relations machine of the Democratic Party, and it's time you were all fired and real journalists brought in, so that we can actually have a daily newspaper in our city.

Obama's Lies: The GOP's October Reprise

2008-10-23T09:01:00.009-05:00

The more people really research Barak Obama, the more it is apparent this man is a communist.

He is a puppet of Bill Ayers, and is being financially backed by George Soros.

We can't afford to experiment with

this man's brand of communist leftist

politics.

Vote for conservative change.

Vote for McCain/Palin

The Case Against Obama

2008-10-10T18:13:00.004-05:00

It's actually fairly simple.

1) He's horribly inexperienced. If it weren't for his teleprompter, he wouldn't know what to say most of the time. Joe Biden put it best: "The presidency is no place for on-the-job training." (Similar reasons why I originally had my doubts about Gov. Palin, until I learned more about her government positions.)

2) He's a good speaker, and he's engaging, but when you look at what he's saying, he's saying very little. A lot of words but no substance. Being a good speaker will not make you a good president. Bill Clinton. Case closed.

3) He's inseparably tied to William Ayers, a known far far leftist terrorist who admitted to planting bombs as part of the "weather underground." Ayers participated in the bombings of New York City Police Headquarters in 1970, the United States Capitol building in 1971, and The Pentagon in 1972, as he noted in his 2001 book, Fugitive Days. This man helped him launch his political career and has been an advisor for YEARS. Do we really want this kind of guy friends with our president?

4) He's inseparably tied to his pastor (now "former" pastor) Jeremiah Wright, who's racist and America hating rhetoric over the years is something that Obama says he doesn't remember hearing. Google this one; you'll find page after page after page of evidence that will leave you with no doubt Mr. Obama was there. A lot. Does he subscribe to the same racist or America hating views? One has to wonder how years of indoctrination under this pastor has affected Mr. Obama. Are we willing to gamble the presidency away hoping he doesn't?

5) He's inseparably tied to ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now,) an ultra-left organization that has been stained with corruption (especially voter fraud.) Mr. Obama also has used his political ties to funnel money to them. "ACORN as well as other groups were the recipients of foundation money from both the Woods Fund and Joyce Foundation. Why is this important? Obama sat on both boards. Through his board positions, he was able to assist in the funneling of many millions of dollars in grant money to various ultra-liberal organizations like Chicago’s ACORN. It may not be illegal but it gives me pause. source Like most leftist organizations, the original goals were lofty, but the money and power have corrupted them into a tool for the ultra-left. Do we want a man who allies himself with these people? I do not think so.

6) He actually believes climate change is solely due to man-made causes. To quote Clara Peller, "Where's the beef?" Prove it Mr. Obama (when Biden said this, too, during the VP debate, I almost fell off my chair.) Do we really want to elect a president who will spend billions of dollars on junk science? We have more important things to deal with right now...

7) He will abandon the Iraqi people and the government they have set up. He's said it over and over again. He'd rather go and start a war with Pakistan than he would continue to stabilize a democracy in Iraq. An Iran-controlled Iraq would be a threat to the world, not just the US or Israel. Only a fool would think we don't need to be in Iraq.

8) He would gladly meet with Mahkklklklmood Accckkcckcckckmadinejad anytime he wants, with no pre-conditions. Even Joe Biden thought this was insane. Iran continues to funnel weapons, terrorists, and suicide bombers into Iraq. Nah, we can just sit down with their leaders, have a cup of tea, and work this out. Oh boy. Can anyone say, "Neville Chamberlain?"

9) He would raise taxes...a lot. He thinks raising taxes only on those making $250,000 or more wouldn't hurt the people who's taxes weren't raised. Uh, how will the businesses making the larger profits pass on the cost of these higher taxes? THAT'S RIGHT, by raising the prices of the goods and services we currently use. Mr. Obama's plan would put more money in the treasury for a short while, but the economy would suffer as a result.

10) Congress is controlled by Democrats. Most of the bills passed and the action taken by Congress have been Democrat ideas. Congress has an approval rating of 10%. Do you really want these guys in control of the Executive Branch, too?

McCain has more experience and has proven leadership qualities. Of "the two evils" we usually always choose from for our president, he is the obvious choice. God help us all if Obama gets in. The president would not be Barack Obama anyway; it would be George Soros pulling his strings and setting (buying) policy.

Predictions for VP

2008-08-19T22:42:00.003-05:00

B. Hussein Obama:

Joe Biden

John "Rhino" McCain:

Mitt Romney

Anyone beg to differ?

Essay on "George's War"

2008-07-22T20:33:00.003-05:00

A friend emailed me the text of this essay.

I found it refreshing. Read the original here.

LISTEN to it HERE.

Or...read it below:

by Investor's Business Daily
Friday, June 20, 2008 4:20 PM PT

No one likes war. War is a horrific affair, bloody and expensive. Sending our men and women into battle to perhaps die or be maimed is an unconscionable thought.

Yet some wars need to be waged, and someone needs to lead. The citizenry and Congress are often ambivalent or largely opposed to any given war. It's up to our leader to convince them. That's why we call the leader "Commander in Chief."

George W.'s war was no different. There was lots of resistance to it. Many in Congress were vehemently against the idea. The Commander in Chief had to lobby for legislative approval.

Along with supporters, George W. used the force of his convictions, the power of his title and every ounce of moral suasion he could muster to rally support. He had to assure Congress and the public that the war was morally justified, winnable and affordable. Congress eventually came around and voted overwhelmingly to wage war.

George W. then lobbied foreign governments for support. But in the end, only one European nation helped us. The rest of the world sat on its hands and watched.

After a few quick victories, things started to go bad. There were many dark days when all the news was discouraging. Casualties began to mount. It became obvious that our forces were too small. Congress began to drag its feet about funding the effort.

Many who had voted to support the war just a few years earlier were beginning to speak against it and accuse the Commander in Chief of misleading them. Many critics began to call him incompetent, an idiot and even a liar. Journalists joined the negative chorus with a vengeance.

As the war entered its fourth year, the public began to grow weary of the conflict and the casualties. George W.'s popularity plummeted. Yet through it all, he stood firm, supporting the troops and endorsing the struggle.

Without his unwavering support, the war would have surely ended, then and there, in overwhelming and total defeat.

At this darkest of times, he began to make some changes. More troops were added and trained. Some advisers were shuffled, and new generals installed.

Then, unexpectedly and gradually, things began to improve. Now it was the enemy that appeared to be growing weary of the lengthy conflict and losing support. Victories began to come, and hope returned.

Many critics in Congress and the press said the improvements were just George W.'s good luck. The progress, they said, would be temporary. He knew, however, that in warfare good fortune counts.

Then, in the unlikeliest of circumstances and perhaps the most historic example of military luck, the enemy blundered and was resoundingly defeated. After six long years of war, the Commander in Chief basked in a most hard-fought victory.

So . . . . .
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. . . . on that historic day, October 19, 1781, in a place called Yorktown, a satisfied George Washington sat upon his beautiful white horse and accepted the surrender of Lord Cornwallis, effectively ending the Revolutionary War!

Sauerberg: Common Sense In The US Senate

2008-06-23T18:29:00.008-05:00

Steve Sauerberg has put his bid for US Senate in high gear with a barrage of ads that have started running on many major radio stations (and I would predict the majority of which are in the Chicago area.)
If you would like to listen to one of the advertisements, click here.

Check out the Republican Candidate's website http://www.sauerbergforsenate.org.

Here's one of many reasons why we need REPUBLICANS in the US Senate:

Predictions

2008-06-01T18:42:00.003-05:00

McCain by a landslide.

Obama will win the nomination for the Dems, but the American people will see his lack of experience and ties to known terrorists and other anti-American groups as a huge liability.

Hillary will try to buy the nomination, but it won't work.

McCain will simply campaign as he always does, and America will once again choose the lesser of two evils.

Your thoughts?

Murtha Should Resign

2008-03-28T15:02:00.002-05:00

Given today's news John Murtha should resign.

Two of the three marines originally charged in the Haditha case have had their charges dropped. Only the commander's case is still pending.

According to John Murtha, these men were all guilty many months ago. Nice and patriotic of Murtha to support our troops by doing away with all that messy investigation and substantiation of facts business.

Obama WAS In 'God Damn America' Service!

2008-03-17T07:51:00.001-05:00

According to this Newsmax article which will likely be broadcast over TV and radio this coming week, the church services where his spiritual advisor and close friend Rev. Wright said "God Damn America" were indeed services that Barak Obama attended, despite his denial of ever hearing the words before.

Not only did he attend, but he sat through the whole sermon, and even nodded in agreement.

Do we want this "hate America first" type of person in the White House?

I do NOT think so.

Obama's Earmarks Over $740 MILLION

2008-03-14T15:03:00.004-05:00

No, not those earmarks...

According to THIS STORY at Newsmax, B. Hussein Obama attempted to earmark $1 MILLION to the hospital where his wife works, and successfully earmarked $1.3 MILLION to the company where one of his national finance committee members is on the board of directors.

Coincidence?

I think not.

Remember people, Mr. B. Hussein Obama is from the Chicago political machine. Perhaps he took a tip from Blago on how to do business?

Hillary is done...But what of Obama?

2008-02-27T10:15:00.004-06:00

Obama in Kenya 2006, dressed as a Somali elder

For intents and purposes, Hillary is done. Obama, the charmer, has pulled ahead in delegate terms and unless his people catch the Arkansas flu, he will most likely win the nomination.

What exactly does Obama stand for? 'Hope.' 'Change.' Hope for, what? Change to, what? According to statements made by B. Hussein, he's going to raise our taxes exponentially while giving Osama Bin Laden the same rights as U.S. citizens. He's been voted the newest "most liberal Senator" and I can see why.

I still stand by my earlier post: Regardless of politics, who has the most experience? It's not B. Hussein, and it's not Mrs. Bill Clinton.

To keep safe, to reign in the $874 BILLION in new spending proposed by B. Hussein, and to put the most experienced candidate in the White House, there's only one choice: John McCain.

But in an unrelated story...

This just came in, and to be honest it has me EXTREMELY CONCERNED. According to this story the IRS is investigating the church/denomination that B. Hussein belongs to because they say a speech given by Obama at his own church "violated restrictions on political activity for nonprofit groups."

Since when does free speech end at the church door? I do not agree with the racist statements made by members of B. Hussein's church, nor am I comfortable with their ties to Louis Farrakhan. However, as Evelyn Beatrice Hall has said, "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

We in the Christian community believe that those who follow Christian principles best (and therefore submit themselves to the Will of God) should make the best leaders. If we believe that another candidate for an office does not follow these principles and therefore would not be a good candidate, we should be able to make those statements. I do not agree with this "IRS" investigation. No matter how misquided the Obama Church is, they still should have the right to free speech.

This is what 'Big Government' will do for you...

FrankTV

2008-02-21T20:10:00.002-06:00

As my toes thaw out from dealing with this week's global warming attack, I fired up the TiVO and watched another episode of FrankTV.

This sketch pretty much sums up my attitude about "global warming:"

Canadian Editorial Blasts Democrats

2008-01-24T15:54:00.000-06:00

An old headline from Ontario's "The National Post"

The link for this editorial from a Canadian newspaper came last week in my email. At first, the article seemed to have been written by an American. When I looked at things in more detail, I noticed this was a newspaper based in Ontario Canada.

The piece, written by Theo Caldwell came from the National Post and published on 12-26-07 was entitled, "Democrat or Republican? The question is shockingly easy"

The author does not address much detail with regard to political opinions, issues, party, gender or even race! (believe it or not!) He simply looks at qualifications and experience.

As in most elections, it's the lesser of two evils. In this election, regardless of Republican nominee, that person has my vote!

2008-01-24T06:59:00.000-06:00

2008-01-18T10:36:00.000-06:00

Evil George W. Bush's Strikes Again

2008-01-05T19:02:00.000-06:00

It appears that George W. Bush's weathermachine that devestated the gulf states in 2005 is at it again with rain and wind. Karl Rove, now free to be a rogue agent for the evil Bush regime, blew up the levee and allowed Bush's weathermachine to flood major areas of northern California and Nevada.

It is not known if Harry Reid sold any of the flooded land prior to the current disaster.

2008-01-01T07:04:00.000-06:00

2007-12-17T22:11:00.000-06:00

2007-12-13T16:54:00.000-06:00

2007-11-12T09:11:00.000-06:00

Thank You, Veterans

2007-11-09T20:57:00.000-06:00

What is a Veteran?

Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye.

Others may carry the evidence inside them: a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: the soul's ally forged in the refinery of adversity.

Except in parades, however, the men and women who have kept America safe wear no badge or emblem.

You can't tell a vet just by looking.

He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel.

He is the bar room loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.

She - or he - is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.

He is the POW who went away one person and came back another - or didn't come back AT ALL.

He is the Parris Island Drill Instructor who has never seen combat - but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's backs.

He is the parade-riding Legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand.

He is the career quartermaster who watched the ribbons and medals pass him by.

He is the three anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all the anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.

He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket - palsied now and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp and who wishes all day long that his wife were still alive to hold him when the nightmares come.

He is an ordinary, and yet an extraordinary, human being - a person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice theirs.

He is a Soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest, greatest nation ever known.

So remember, each time you see someone who has served our country, just lean over and say, "Thank You." That's all most people need, and in most cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or were awarded.

Two little words that mean a lot, "THANK YOU."

"It is the Soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the Soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the Soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protestor to burn the flag."

- - - Father Denis Edward O'Brien / USMC - - -

Thoughts for today...

2007-11-08T15:01:00.000-06:00

George Ryan finally reported to prison today after being found guilty in trial court over a year and a half ago.

Here's the question: How long will it take before Blago moves in with him?

I'm thinking about five years. By the time you get him out of office, the charges are filed, the trial happens, the verdict is read, and then the apparent 18-month waiting time would sum up to maybe five years.

How long do you think before he'll be in the joint with Ryan?

2007-11-08T14:56:00.001-06:00

2007-10-28T13:08:00.000-05:00

About As Popular As A Root Canal

2007-10-26T11:51:00.000-05:00

" Rasmussen found this month that 63 percent of African Americans, 75 percent of Democrats and liberals, 77 percent of Cook County voters, 83 percent of women and 85 percent of independents rated Blagojevich's job performance as fair or poor. If his "friends" think that way, you can imagine how his political enemies rate him. It ain't pretty. "

All this, and Blago isn't even fighting a war against Islamo-fascism! The Illinois Republican Party had better step up their search for a good candidate.

The results of the last gubernatorial election from Macon County showed that the majority of republicans wanted Bill Brady and not Judy Barr-Topinka. I would hope that Mr. Brady is ready for action in 2010. I would have hoped that it was he who had been slated to go up against Dick Turban instead of an unkown doctor from Chicago. This candidate (Steve Sauerberg, M.D. of La Grange) may be a good guy, but his lack of experience will not help him in a race with Dick Turban.

2007-10-22T09:52:00.001-05:00

2007-09-28T13:04:00.000-05:00

Blago's Blunders Bequeath Big Bonuses

2007-09-10T15:40:00.001-05:00

After our governor's fiasco with the state budget and the millions of extra dollars it cost for the interim budget to be passed, now it seems that everyone in the state legislature, including the governor, will give themselves retro-active raises, too!

"Every lawmaker got at least $2,762. Gov. Rod Blagojevich got the biggest amount -- $7,223.50."

Why doesn't he just wear a mask and say stick 'em up?

2007-09-05T11:23:00.000-05:00

Illinois Dems Power Struggle

2007-08-28T19:48:00.000-05:00

Governor Blagojevich is suing Mike Madigan

The more tantrums Blago throws, the more likely one of his fellow democrats will somehow make it known to a major media outlet uncontravertable evidence of some major scandal (maybe, say, exchanging political favors for campaign contributions?)

If this were in decades past, I think that perhaps Mr. Blagojevich would be the victim of an 'unfortunate accident.' Any word from Governor Dailey on all this?

Democrat "accomplishments?"

2007-08-05T16:40:00.001-05:00

Reuters thinks so...

I was reading the news on the net just now, when I happened across a "story" by Reuters boasting of the 'accomplishments' of the Democrats as Congress goes into recess.

The trouble is, there are no accomplishments.

Read the story and see for yourself.

Here's the list Reuters puts out, and you will see my response in italics:

"Democrats will point to these accomplishments:

* The first minimum wage increase in a decade went into effect in July helping the lowest-paid workers. Republicans repeatedly blocked the pay hike when they controlled Congress.

I am all for everyone getting higher wages, but when it comes at the expense of shutting down small businesses, I have to say no. Increased payroll costs means higher costs passed on to consumers, less jobs available for those entering the work-force, and sometimes small businesses being forced to shut their doors. For those lucky enough to get a minimum wage job, I say count yourself fortunate. Thanks to the democrats, those jobs will be much less plentiful (and if they're able to push through a tax increase, it will get even worse.)

* Republicans lost their majority in last November's elections largely because of the Iraq war, but also due to voter disgust with ethics violations that left some Republican lawmakers and aides in jail or under investigation. Democrats pushed through ethics and lobbying reforms that public advocacy groups applauded while also saying the provisions could have been stronger. Bush is expected to sign the bill into law.

We've already been through this time and time again. Democrat scandals greatly outweigh anything that Republicans have done. Sure was interesting the timing of the Mark Foley story. Simply a "political ploy" which the Drive-By Media picked up and ran with. No, the Republicans lost their majority because they were not the conservatives that the voters had thought they were. The ethics/lobbying reforms may help some, but they were simply a token to make the Democrats look better than the ugly truth that surrounds them day after day.

* Congress passed, and Bush signed into law on Friday, a series of post-September 11 anti-terrorism steps that had been recommended by an independent commission in 2004. These include broader screening of cargo bound for the United States, allocating more federal grants to cities at high-risk of attack and improving emergency workers' communications systems so they can better coordinate during an attack or natural disaster.

This legislation has been around for far longer than January...both parties have been working hard to craft this bill for MONTHS. The dems cannot take credit for this. It's like the relief pitcher striking out the last man getting credit for winning the game when all the runs were scored in the first inning.

* The House and Senate passed different versions of a bill to significantly expand child health insurance coverage for those in low-income families not poor enough to qualify for Medicaid. Bush has threatened to veto either version, but Democrats may be able to override him.

How in the world do you Dems propose to pay for all these entitlements? Why not just give all of us free "healthcare," have the government take over the ownership of all business, abolish the free press, outlaw all religions (especially those that advocate freedom) and imprison those who won't go along? You laugh now, but Hillary is already saying a lot of this...

* The House and Senate passed bills to help students handle soaring college costs and crack down on misconduct in the student loan industry. They likely will send Bush a bill in September that goes directly to the stressed wallets of middle-class parents.

Same as above. A future bill does not count as an accomplishment. Just out of curiousity, where is the money coming from to help these college students? Let me guess...more taxes? Gutting our defense budget?

* A popular measure allowing broader stem cell research that supporters hope will help cure Parkinson's disease and other incurable illnesses was passed a second time and Bush vetoed it a second time.

A popular measure? Maybe in San Francisco, but not in the rest of the US!! EMBRYONIC stem cell research, which has NEVER shown any successful studies, is for what this legislation was asking for more funding. ADULT stem cells, umbilical cord stem cells, and others HAVE shown successful studies. Gee, I wonder why the President vetoed the Dems' bills....Hmmmmm. Passing legislation that rewards the destruction of human life is NOT an accomplishment. It's a travesty.

* Appealing to growing consumer fears of global warming and U.S. reliance on foreign oil, the Senate passed a bill mandating that cars get 40 percent better fuel efficiency and encouraging a dramatic increase in ethanol as a fuel. Democrats hope to send Bush a bill after the August recess.

Global warming? Uh...since when should the government try to change the natural progression of our planet's natural cyclic temperature change? The tiny microscopic fraction of potential temperature increase that could be attributed to humans is outweighed a million times over by the fluctuations in solar radiation and cyclic temperature change that has been noted by many scientists over and over. 30 years ago Newsweek was talking about global cooling. Last year there was a story in August saying "it's the hottest it's been in 2000 years." I would like to know what humans could have down 2000 years ago to cause those hot temperatures back then. If they didn't cause that temperature change, then it must be a....cycle. If our top people today cannot predict the weather accurately, how in the world can they say my SUV is killing polar bears? They can't!

I am all for being better stewards of the planet we have been given and the resources we use, but creating a "crisis" and then pushing legislation to somehow avert this crisis is all a ruse to allow more government control over our lives. There are other ways of accomplishing environmental stewardship. Running up the cost of corn so that scores of poor families in Mexico and Latin America cannot afford corn tortillas is not a way to save the planet (unless you're one of those population control nutjobs.)

* A fiscal 2008 budget plan passed with new controls that attempt to impose fiscal responsibility after years of huge budget deficits. Under the plan, any new tax cuts or spending increases would have to be paid for. Republicans complain there is no guarantee Bush's tax cuts will be renewed after 2010.

First of all...tax cuts have been proven to usher in MUCH MORE revenue to the general treasury that tax increases. Democrats wanting more money spent on spinach and their other pork projects instead of outfitting our troops to win the war on terror (which they do NOT want us to win, by the way) is proof of the DNC's inability to control their own spending. Cutting unnecessary pork, limiting the increases in federal dispersements, and good old-fashioned accountability will do much more than the dems throwing more bureaucracy at us. The trouble is, this disease is not limited to the dems; many republicans also showed their true colors (and greed) in the past few years, and that's why they were voted out!

* After six years of mostly getting a free pass from Republicans, the Bush administration is facing oversight by committees with probes ranging from the Justice Department's firing of federal prosecutors to the Pentagon's handling of the death in Afghanistan of ex-football player Pat Tillman.

This is an accomplishment? No, this is payback. These investigations are simply a payback for the investigation into the Clinton-Lewinsky-Wag the Dog scandal. Henry Waxman is having a field-day. Clinton fired ALL of the attorneys general when he came in, and no one batted an eye. When Bush fires only fires those that he thought were not doing what he had asked, then there's an investigation. Pat Tillman's situation is one of many that our military has had to deal with over the centuries. It is not a Bush thing, it's a war thing.

Congress has oversite, people. Who do you think are on the committees that oversee appropriations, rules, and other aspects of our government? Senators and Representatives, that's who. No, this isn't a Congress oversite of the Executive, it's a Democrat whiny "we want our power back" oversite of a Republican President willing to take out Saddam for the butcher, liar, and threat that he was. Pathetic is what I call these "investigations." And the American People see right through it. The latest polls I heard had Congressional approval at 6%, not 33%. Bush's approval has been going up, and the last I heard it was 45% in one poll (for what that's worth...polls are so subject to error anymore with the way they're designed, I really don't trust any of them.) Keep in mind people, it is the DNC and the DBM who pay attention to and use "polls" more than the RNC. Why? Propaganda tends to work.

I know Mr. Jackson will respond with "where's your source?" for many of my retorts. I would counter that Reuters does not provide any proof for their claims; they just say "its so." Reuters, we don't buy your propaganda.

What Kind of Conservative Are You?

2007-07-30T23:09:00.000-05:00

I read a recent post on BA Moonshadow's blog, and I took the test:

My Conservative Identity:

You are a Faith-Based Fighter, also known as a religious conservative. You believe in Judeo-Christian values, restoring God’s rightful place in the public square, and in showing all the unwashed and unsaved liberal sinners the path to salvation, or at least to the GOP.

Take the quiz at www.FightLiberals.com

No surprises here.

Decatur To Host Illinois GOP State Convention 2008

2007-07-14T03:25:00.000-05:00

The Decatur Conference Center and Hotel (the former Holiday Inn) will be the location for the 2008 Illinois State GOP Convention on June 6-7, 2008.

The IL GOP's choice for their convention was made for several reasons (central location) but also because Decatur was where Abraham Lincoln was first nominated for President of the United States in 1860.

This choice by the IL GOP stands in stark contrast to the Illinois Democrats who seem to think that the state of Illinois is primarily north of I-80 and that the rest of the state is just the "suburbs." For the sake of the state, I hope Mr. McKenna and the Party are able to produce some quality people to fix the mess that Rod Blagojevich has made of Illinois.

2007-06-19T16:34:00.000-05:00

Still "Clean"? (and articulate) - Obama's Ties To Scandal

2007-06-17T07:36:00.000-05:00

The New York Times of all papers has exposed a fairly strong link between Mr. Clean-and-Articulate and scandal (aka, involves Rod Blagojevich, too.)

Mr. Antoin Rezko has recently been indicted as part of that "influence" problem in Illinois politics. And guess who was Mr. Rezko's golden boy up until recently?

Read the story and see for yourself.

Cindy Sheehan Quits Democratic Party & Retires From Politics

2007-05-29T12:19:00.001-05:00

According to several sources, "Peace Mom" (aka, looney left activist) Cindy Sheehan wrote a stunning letter to the Democratic Party after they sent a bill to President Bush for funding our military. He signed it, of course. Cindy didn't like that.

Now, it appears she's retiring from politics all together. She must have really been disappointed.

Now if we could just get all the other looney-left elements out of the DNC, maybe the legacy of Harry S. Truman and John Kennedy could once again be restored.

GRT To Be Voted On Tomorrow

2007-05-09T20:17:00.000-05:00

Pray this doesn't get passed.

Video

2007-04-25T21:14:00.000-05:00

A friend sent me a link to this video about the Virginia Tech shootings. The family and friends of those left behind need your prayers.

Cry Softly

2007-04-18T19:11:00.000-05:00

Good Friday

2007-04-06T20:52:00.000-05:00

Like many of you, my employer gave me today off. I often wonder why Christian holidays still merit a vacation when those taking the time off AND those paying for them to do so do not practice the religion allowing for the holiday in the first place. So, in an effort to illustrate just what the Easter season represents, I am posting a story sent to me from a friend many months ago. I gained a deeper understanding of my faith the day I read this, and I trust you will too.

There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr. Christianson, a studious man who taught at a small college in the western United States. Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at this particular institution. Every student was required to take this course his or her freshman year, regardless of his or her major. Although Dr. Christianson tried hard to communicate the essence of the gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon the course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best efforts, most students refused to take Christianity seriously. This year, Dr. Christianson had a special student named Steve.

Steve was only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going on to seminary for the ministry. Steve was popular, he was well liked, and he was an imposing physical specimen. He was now the starting center on the school football team, and was the best student in the professor's class. One day, Dr. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him.

"How many push-ups can you do?"

Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."

"200? That's pretty good, Steve!" Dr. Christianson said. "Do you think
you could do 300?"

Steve replied, "I don't know... I've never done 300 at a time."

"Do you think you could?" again asked Dr. Christianson.

"Well, I can try," said Steve.

"Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I need you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it," said the professor.

Steve said, "Well... I think I can...yeah, I can do it."

Dr. Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday. Let me explain what I have in mind."

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the room. When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of donuts. No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the extra fancy BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls. Everyone was pretty excited it was Friday, the last class of the day, and they were going to get an early start on the weekend with a party in Dr. Christianson's class.

Dr. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked, “Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?"

Cynthia said, "Yes."

Dr. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"

"Sure." Steve jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk. Dr. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.

Dr. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, “Joe, do you want a donut?"

Joe said, "Yes." Dr. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?"

Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten push-ups for every person before they got their donut. Walking down the second aisle, Dr. Christianson came to Scott. Scott was on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship.

When the professor asked, "Scott do you want a donut?" Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own push-ups?"

Dr. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them." Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."

Dr. Christianson shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?" With perfect obedience Steve started to do ten push-ups.

Scott said, "HEY! I said I didn't want one!" Dr. Christianson said, "Look! This is my classroom, my class, my desks, and these are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he put a donut on Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow.

Dr. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry. Dr. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?" Sternly, Jenny said, "No."

Then Dr. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten more push-ups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?" Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.

By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students were beginning to say "No" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks. Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these push-ups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved.

Dr. Christianson asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in the class, to watch Steve do each push-up to make sure he did the full ten push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where Steve was so Robert could count the set and watch Steve closely.

Dr. Christianson started down the fourth row. During his class, however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room. When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that now there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Dr. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.

Steve asked Dr. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?"

Dr. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your push-ups. You are in charge now. You can do them any way that you want." And Dr. Christianson went on.

A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one voice, "NO! Don't come in! Stay out!" Jason didn't know what was going on.

Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."

Professor Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten push-ups for him?"

Steve said, "Yes, let him come in. Give him a donut."

Dr. Christianson said, "Okay, Steve, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?" Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. "Yes," he said, "give me a donut."

"Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?" Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Dr. Christianson finished the fourth row, and then started on those visitors seated by the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. By this time sweat was profusely dropping off of his face, there was no sound except his heavy breathing; there was not a dry eye in the room.

The very last two students in the room were two young women, both cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christianson went to Linda, the second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?" Linda said, very sadly, "No, thank you."

Professor Christianson quietly asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?" Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda.

Then Dr. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a donut?" Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. "Dr. Christianson, why can't I help him?"

Dr. Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, Steve has to do it alone, I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not. When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked my grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade. Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior work. Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my party unless he paid the price by doing your push-ups. He and I made a deal for your sakes."

"Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?"

As Steve very slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 push-ups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

Dr. Christianson turned to the room and said. "And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, on the cross, plead to the Father, 'into thy hands I commend my spirit.' With the understanding that He had done everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk, uneaten."

Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.

"Well done, good and faithful servant," said the professor, adding "Not all sermons are preached in words."

Turning to his class, the professor said, "My wish is that you might understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He spared not His only Begotten Son, but gave Him up for us all, for the whole Church, now and forever. Whether or not we choose to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid."

Trust the UN?

2007-03-30T18:25:00.000-05:00

During the 2004 presidential election campaign, John Kerry, Democrat from Massachusetts, made several statements about making sure we follow the lead of the United Nations. During the 2006 congressional elections, several Democrats likewise invoked a pledge to the UN during their never-ending Bush-bash.

Here is one of many reasons why we should FEAR the UN. The UN Human Rights Council doesn't allow free speech!

Warning: This video is very disturbing...or at least it should be.

2007-03-30T17:58:00.000-05:00

We're So Sorry, Hypocrite Albert (Gore)

2007-02-27T09:32:00.000-06:00

Although Mr. Gore's propagan...."documentary" won an Oscar, it seems the inconvenient truth of the matter is that he does not walk the walk while he talks his talk.

A non-partisan group in Tennessee has proof that Al Gore doesn't even come close to practicing what he preaches.

2007-02-18T09:54:00.000-06:00

The Culture War: One Party Has Declared It's Position

2007-02-16T21:02:00.000-06:00

As a conservative I tend to support candidates who exemplify the judeo-christian philosphy upon which our nation was founded. This coming presidential election will be no exception; other conservatives will likewise examine each candidate's record and views to see where they "fit in." Choosing a candidate that we trust to "do what's right" can be a tricky prospect.

Fortunately for us, we can now write off John "Breck Girl" Edwards from the list. Hiring and maintaining two bloggers on his campaign who were flagrantly bigoted against Christians and Christianity clearly identifies this democrat and his extreme-left supporters as a "non-candidate." With the majority of democrats cozying up to the extreme left, and a large portion of republicans being wishy-washy with their values, choosing a candidate next fall may be a difficult prospect.

Please read Bill O'Reilly's recent column on the John Edwards fiasco and see for yourself why the extreme left (majority of the democrat party) cannot be trusted.

By the way, I'm just starting Culture Warrior by Mr. O'Reilly. Check it out!

GLOBAL WARMING STRIKES AGAIN!

2007-02-14T17:12:00.000-06:00

With the retched smell of fossil fuel exhaust and the stench of ever-increasing carbon dioxide filling the air, I took a couple of hours this morning out of my usual work day to shovel about two feet of crystallized "global warming dust" off my driveway so I could go to work.

This is the worst snow we've had in 30 years. It's been the coldest winter I can remember for at least 15 years. I heard someone say at lunch today the same thing; they thought about every 10-20 years we get a cycle of a real cold and heavy snow winters for 3-5 years, and then milder, less precipitous snow the years in between. I'm not sure where to look this up (I'm sure our local weather reporters do.)

Anyway, I've got a call in to Al Gore, Jr. (inventor of the Internet) to see if he could come by tomorrow to help me shovel more global warming off my porch. So far, no answer.

The State Of The Union - January 23, 2007

2007-01-23T21:51:00.000-06:00

(As Prepared For Delivery)

Madam Speaker, Vice President Cheney, Members of Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow citizens:

This rite of custom brings us together at a defining hour - when decisions are hard and courage is tested. We enter the year 2007 with large endeavors underway, and others that are ours to begin. In all of this, much is asked of us. We must have the will to face difficult challenges and determined enemies - and the wisdom to face them together.

Some in this Chamber are new to the House and Senate - and I congratulate the Democratic majority. Congress has changed, but our responsibilities have not. Each of us is guided by our own convictions - and to these we must stay faithful. Yet we are all held to the same standards, and called to serve the same good purposes: To extend this Nation's prosperity ... to spend the people's money wisely ... to solve problems, not leave them to future generations ... to guard America against all evil, and to keep faith with those we have sent forth to defend us.

We are not the first to come here with government divided and uncertainty in the air. Like many before us, we can work through our differences, and achieve big things for the American people. Our citizens don't much care which side of the aisle we sit on - as long as we are willing to cross that aisle when there is work to be done. Our job is to make life better for our fellow Americans, and help them to build a future of hope and opportunity - and this is the business before us tonight.

A future of hope and opportunity begins with a growing economy - and that is what we have. We are now in the 41st month of uninterrupted job growth - in a recovery that has created 7.2 million new jobs ... so far. Unemployment is low, inflation is low, and wages are rising. This economy is on the move - and our job is to keep it that way, not with more government but with more enterprise.

Next week, I will deliver a full report on the state of our economy. Tonight, I want to discuss three economic reforms that deserve to be priorities for this Congress.

First, we must balance the federal budget. We can do so without raising taxes. What we need to do is impose spending discipline in Washington, D.C. We set a goal of cutting the deficit in half by 2009 - and met that goal three years ahead of schedule. Now let us take the next step. In the coming weeks, I will submit a budget that eliminates the federal deficit within the next five years. I ask you to make the same commitment. Together, we can restrain the spending appetite of the federal government, and balance the federal budget.

Next, there is the matter of earmarks. These special interest items are often slipped into bills at the last hour - when not even C-SPAN is watching. In 2005 alone, the number of earmarks grew to over 13,000 and totaled nearly $18 billion. Even worse, over 90 percent of earmarks never make it to the floor of the House and Senate - they are dropped into Committee reports that are not even part of the bill that arrives on my desk. You did not vote them into law. I did not sign them into law. Yet they are treated as if they have the force of law. The time has come to end this practice. So let us work together to reform the budget process ... expose every earmark to the light of day and to a vote in Congress ... and cut the number and cost of earmarks at least in half by the end of this session.

Finally, to keep this economy strong we must take on the challenge of entitlements. Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid are commitments of conscience - and so it is our duty to keep them permanently sound. Yet we are failing in that duty - and this failure will one day leave our children with three bad options: huge tax increases, huge deficits, or huge and immediate cuts in benefits. Everyone in this Chamber knows this to be true - yet somehow we have not found it in ourselves to act. So let us work together and do it now. With enough good sense and good will, you and I can fix Medicare and Medicaid - and save Social Security.

Spreading opportunity and hope in America also requires public schools that give children the knowledge and character they need in life. Five years ago, we rose above partisan differences to pass the No Child Left Behind Act - preserving local control, raising standards in public schools, and holding those schools accountable for results. And because we acted, students are performing better in reading and math, and minority students are closing the achievement gap.

Now the task is to build on this success, without watering down standards ... without taking control from local communities ... and without backsliding and calling it reform. We can lift student achievement even higher by giving local leaders flexibility to turn around failing schools ... and by giving families with children stuck in failing schools the right to choose something better. We must increase funds for students who struggle - and make sure these children get the special help they need. And we can make sure our children are prepared for the jobs of the future, and our country is more competitive, by strengthening math and science skills. The No Child Left Behind Act has worked for America's children - and I ask Congress to reauthorize this good law.

A future of hope and opportunity requires that all our citizens have affordable and available healthcare. When it comes to healthcare, government has an obligation to care for the elderly, the disabled, and poor children. We will meet those responsibilities. For all other Americans, private health insurance is the best way to meet their needs. But many Americans cannot afford a health insurance policy. Tonight, I propose two new initiatives to help more Americans afford their own insurance. First, I propose a standard tax deduction for health insurance that will be like the standard tax deduction for dependents. Families with health insurance will pay no income or payroll taxes on $15,000 of their income. Single Americans with health insurance will pay no income or payroll taxes on $7,500 of their income. With this reform, more than 100 million men, women, and children who are now covered by employer-provided insurance will benefit from lower tax bills. At the same time, this reform will level the playing field for those who do not get health insurance through their job. For Americans who now purchase health insurance on their own, my proposal would mean a substantial tax savings - $4,500 for a family of four making $60,000 a year. And for the millions of other Americans who have no health insurance at all, this deduction would help put a basic private health insurance plan within their reach. Changing the tax code is a vital and necessary step to making healthcare affordable for more Americans.

My second proposal is to help the states that are coming up with innovative ways to cover the uninsured. States that make basic private health insurance available to all their citizens should receive federal funds to help them provide this coverage to the poor and the sick. I have asked the Secretary of Health and Human Services to work with Congress to take existing federal funds and use them to create "Affordable Choices" grants. These grants would give our Nation's governors more money and more flexibility to get private health insurance to those most in need.

There are many other ways that Congress can help. We need to expand Health Savings Accounts ... help small businesses through Association Health Plans ... reduce costs and medical errors with better information technology ... encourage price transparency ... and protect good doctors from junk lawsuits by passing medical liability reform. And in all we do, we must remember that the best healthcare decisions are made not by government and insurance companies, but by patients and their doctors.

Extending hope and opportunity in our country requires an immigration system worthy of America - with laws that are fair and borders that are secure. When laws and borders are routinely violated, this harms the interests of our country. To secure our border, we are doubling the size of the Border Patrol - and funding new infrastructure and technology. Yet even with all these steps, we cannot fully secure the border unless we take pressure off the border - and that requires a temporary worker program. We should establish a legal and orderly path for foreign workers to enter our country to work on a temporary basis. As a result, they won't have to try to sneak in - and that will leave border agents free to chase down drug smugglers, and criminals, and terrorists. We will enforce our immigration laws at the worksite, and give employers the tools to verify the legal status of their workers - so there is no excuse left for violating the law. We need to uphold the great tradition of the melting pot that welcomes and assimilates new arrivals. And we need to resolve the status of the illegal immigrants who are already in our country - without animosity and without amnesty.

Convictions run deep in this Capitol when it comes to immigration. Let us have a serious, civil, and conclusive debate - so that you can pass, and I can sign, comprehensive immigration reform into law.

Extending hope and opportunity depends on a stable supply of energy that keeps America's economy running and America's environment clean. For too long our Nation has been dependent on foreign oil. And this dependence leaves us more vulnerable to hostile regimes, and to terrorists - who could cause huge disruptions of oil shipments ... raise the price of oil ... and do great harm to our economy. It is in our vital interest to diversify America's energy supply - and the way forward is through technology. We must continue changing the way America generates electric power - by even greater use of clean coal technology ... solar and wind energy ... and clean, safe nuclear power. We need to press on with battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles, and expand the use of clean diesel vehicles and biodiesel fuel. We must continue investing in new methods of producing ethanol - using everything from wood chips, to grasses, to agricultural wastes.

We have made a lot of progress, thanks to good policies in Washington and the strong response of the market. Now even more dramatic advances are within reach. Tonight, I ask Congress to join me in pursuing a great goal. Let us build on the work we have done and reduce gasoline usage in the United States by 20 percent in the next ten years - thereby cutting our total imports by the equivalent of three-quarters of all the oil we now import from the Middle East. To reach this goal, we must increase the supply of alternative fuels, by setting a mandatory Fuels Standard to require 35 billion gallons of renewable and alternative fuels in 2017 - this is nearly five times the current target. At the same time, we need to reform and modernize fuel economy standards for cars the way we did for light trucks - and conserve up to eight and a half billion more gallons of gasoline by 2017. Achieving these ambitious goals will dramatically reduce our dependence on foreign oil, but will not eliminate it. So as we continue to diversify our fuel supply, we must also step up domestic oil production in environmentally sensitive ways. And to further protect America against severe disruptions to our oil supply, I ask Congress to double the current capacity of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

America is on the verge of technological breakthroughs that will enable us to live our lives less dependent on oil. These technologies will help us become better stewards of the environment - and they will help us to confront the serious challenge of global climate change.

A future of hope and opportunity requires a fair, impartial system of justice. The lives of citizens across our Nation are affected by the outcome of cases pending in our federal courts. And we have a shared obligation to ensure that the federal courts have enough judges to hear those cases and deliver timely rulings. As President, I have a duty to nominate qualified men and women to vacancies on the federal bench. And the United States Senate has a duty as well - to give those nominees a fair hearing, and a prompt up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.

For all of us in this room, there is no higher responsibility than to protect the people of this country from danger. Five years have come and gone since we saw the scenes and felt the sorrow that terrorists can cause. We have had time to take stock of our situation. We have added many critical protections to guard the homeland. We know with certainty that the horrors of that September morning were just a glimpse of what the terrorists intend for us - unless we stop them. With the distance of time, we find ourselves debating the causes of conflict and the course we have followed. Such debates are essential when a great democracy faces great questions. Yet one question has surely been settled - that to win the war on terror we must take the fight to the enemy.

From the start, America and our allies have protected our people by staying on the offense. The enemy knows that the days of comfortable sanctuary, easy movement, steady financing, and free flowing communications are long over. For the terrorists, life since Nine-Eleven has never been the same. Our success in this war is often measured by the things that did not happen. We cannot know the full extent of the attacks that we and our allies have prevented - but here is some of what we do know: We stopped an al Qaeda plot to fly a hijacked airplane into the tallest building on the West Coast. We broke up a Southeast Asian terrorist cell grooming operatives for attacks inside the United States. We uncovered an al Qaeda cell developing anthrax to be used in attacks against America. And just last August, British authorities uncovered a plot to blow up passenger planes bound for America over the Atlantic Ocean. For each life saved, we owe a debt of gratitude to the brave public servants who devote their lives to finding the terrorists and stopping them.

Every success against the terrorists is a reminder of the shoreless ambitions of this enemy. The evil that inspired and rejoiced in Nine-Eleven is still at work in the world. And so long as that is the case, America is still a Nation at war. In the minds of the terrorists, this war began well before September 11th, and will not end until their radical vision is fulfilled. And these past five years have given us a much clearer view of the nature of this enemy. Al Qaeda and its followers are Sunni extremists, possessed by hatred and commanded by a harsh and narrow ideology. Take almost any principle of civilization, and their goal is the opposite. They preach with threats ... instruct with bullets and bombs ... and promise paradise for the murder of the innocent. Our enemies are quite explicit about their intentions. They want to overthrow moderate governments, and establish safe havens from which to plan and carry out new attacks on our country. By killing and terrorizing Americans, they want to force our country to retreat from the world and abandon the cause of liberty. They would then be free to impose their will and spread their totalitarian ideology. Listen to this warning from the late terrorist Zarqawi: "We will sacrifice our blood and bodies to put an end to your dreams, and what is coming is even worse." And Osama bin Laden declared: "Death is better than living on this Earth with the unbelievers among us."

These men are not given to idle words, and they are just one camp in the Islamist radical movement. In recent times, it has also become clear that we face an escalating danger from Shia extremists who are just as hostile to America, and are also determined to dominate the Middle East. Many are known to take direction from the regime in Iran, which is funding and arming terrorists like Hezbollah - a group second only to al Qaeda in the American lives it has taken.

The Shia and Sunni extremists are different faces of the same totalitarian threat. But whatever slogans they chant, when they slaughter the innocent, they have the same wicked purposes. They want to kill Americans ... kill democracy in the Middle East ... and gain the weapons to kill on an even more horrific scale.

In the sixth year since our Nation was attacked, I wish I could report to you that the dangers have ended. They have not. And so it remains the policy of this government to use every lawful and proper tool of intelligence, diplomacy, law enforcement, and military action to do our duty, to find these enemies, and to protect the American people. This war is more than a clash of arms - it is a decisive ideological struggle, and the security of our Nation is in the balance. To prevail, we must remove the conditions that inspire blind hatred, and drove 19 men to get onto airplanes and come to kill us. What every terrorist fears most is human freedom - societies where men and women make their own choices, answer to their own conscience, and live by their hopes instead of their resentments. Free people are not drawn to violent and malignant ideologies - and most will choose a better way when they are given a chance. So we advance our own security interests by helping moderates, reformers, and brave voices for democracy. The great question of our day is whether America will help men and women in the Middle East to build free societies and share in the rights of all humanity. And I say, for the sake of our own security . . . we must.

In the last two years, we have seen the desire for liberty in the broader Middle East - and we have been sobered by the enemy's fierce reaction. In 2005, the world watched as the citizens of Lebanon raised the banner of the Cedar Revolution ... drove out the Syrian occupiers ... and chose new leaders in free elections. In 2005, the people of Afghanistan defied the terrorists and elected a democratic legislature. And in 2005, the Iraqi people held three national elections - choosing a transitional government ... adopting the most progressive, democratic constitution in the Arab world ... and then electing a government under that constitution. Despite endless threats from the killers in their midst, nearly 12 million Iraqi citizens came out to vote in a show of hope and solidarity we should never forget.

A thinking enemy watched all of these scenes, adjusted their tactics, and in 2006 they struck back. In Lebanon, assassins took the life of Pierre Gemayel, a prominent participant in the Cedar Revolution. And Hezbollah terrorists, with support from Syria and Iran, sowed conflict in the region and are seeking to undermine Lebanon's legitimately elected government. In Afghanistan, Taliban and al Qaeda fighters tried to regain power by regrouping and engaging Afghan and NATO forces. In Iraq, al Qaeda and other Sunni extremists blew up one of the most sacred places in Shia Islam - the Golden Mosque of Samarra. This atrocity, directed at a Muslim house of prayer, was designed to provoke retaliation from Iraqi Shia - and it succeeded. Radical Shia elements, some of whom receive support from Iran, formed death squads. The result was a tragic escalation of sectarian rage and reprisal that continues to this day.

This is not the fight we entered in Iraq, but it is the fight we are in. Every one of us wishes that this war were over and won. Yet it would not be like us to leave our promises unkept, our friends abandoned, and our own security at risk. Ladies and gentlemen: On this day, at this hour, it is still within our power to shape the outcome of this battle. So let us find our resolve, and turn events toward victory. We are carrying out a new strategy in Iraq - a plan that demands more from Iraq's elected government, and gives our forces in Iraq the reinforcements they need to complete their mission. Our goal is a democratic Iraq that upholds the rule of law, respects the rights of its people, provides them security, and is an ally in the war on terror.

In order to make progress toward this goal, the Iraqi government must stop the sectarian violence in its capital. But the Iraqis are not yet ready to do this on their own. So we are deploying reinforcements of more than 20,000 additional soldiers and Marines to Iraq. The vast majority will go to Baghdad, where they will help Iraqi forces to clear and secure neighborhoods, and serve as advisers embedded in Iraqi Army units. With Iraqis in the lead, our forces will help secure the city by chasing down terrorists, insurgents, and roaming death squads. And in Anbar province - where al Qaeda terrorists have gathered and local forces have begun showing a willingness to fight them - we are sending an additional 4,000 United States Marines, with orders to find the terrorists and clear them out. We did not drive al Qaeda out of their safe haven in Afghanistan only to let them set up a new safe haven in a free Iraq.

The people of Iraq want to live in peace, and now is the time for their government to act. Iraq's leaders know that our commitment is not open ended. They have promised to deploy more of their own troops to secure Baghdad - and they must do so. They have pledged that they will confront violent radicals of any faction or political party. They need to follow through, and lift needless restrictions on Iraqi and Coalition forces, so these troops can achieve their mission of bringing security to all of the people of Baghdad. Iraq's leaders have committed themselves to a series of benchmarks to achieve reconciliation - to share oil revenues among all of Iraq's citizens ... to put the wealth of Iraq into the rebuilding of Iraq ... to allow more Iraqis to re-enter their nation's civic life ... to hold local elections ... and to take responsibility for security in every Iraqi province. But for all of this to happen, Baghdad must be secured. And our plan will help the Iraqi government take back its capital and make good on its commitments.

My fellow citizens, our military commanders and I have carefully weighed the options. We discussed every possible approach. In the end, I chose this course of action because it provides the best chance of success. Many in this chamber understand that America must not fail in Iraq - because you understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and far reaching. If American forces step back before Baghdad is secure, the Iraqi government would be overrun by extremists on all sides. We could expect an epic battle between Shia extremists backed by Iran, and Sunni extremists aided by al Qaeda and supporters of the old regime. A contagion of violence could spill out across the country - and in time the entire region could be drawn into the conflict. For America, this is a nightmare scenario. For the enemy, this is the objective. Chaos is their greatest ally in this struggle. And out of chaos in Iraq would emerge an emboldened enemy with new safe havens... new recruits ... new resources ... and an even greater determination to harm America. To allow this to happen would be to ignore the lessons of September 11th and invite tragedy. And ladies and gentlemen, nothing is more important at this moment in our history than for America to succeed in the Middle East ... to succeed in Iraq ... and to spare the American people from this danger.

This is where matters stand tonight, in the here and now. I have spoken with many of you in person. I respect you and the arguments you have made. We went into this largely united - in our assumptions, and in our convictions. And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure. Our country is pursuing a new strategy in Iraq - and I ask you to give it a chance to work. And I ask you to support our troops in the field - and those on their way.

The war on terror we fight today is a generational struggle that will continue long after you and I have turned our duties over to others. That is why it is important to work together so our Nation can see this great effort through. Both parties and both branches should work in close consultation. And this is why I propose to establish a special advisory council on the war on terror, made up of leaders in Congress from both political parties. We will share ideas for how to position America to meet every challenge that confronts us. And we will show our enemies abroad that we are united in the goal of victory.

One of the first steps we can take together is to add to the ranks of our military - so that the American Armed Forces are ready for all the challenges ahead. Tonight I ask the Congress to authorize an increase in the size of our active Army and Marine Corps by 92,000 in the next five years. A second task we can take on together is to design and establish a volunteer Civilian Reserve Corps. Such a corps would function much like our military reserve. It would ease the burden on the Armed Forces by allowing us to hire civilians with critical skills to serve on missions abroad when America needs them. And it would give people across America who do not wear the uniform a chance to serve in the defining struggle of our time.

Americans can have confidence in the outcome of this struggle - because we are not in this struggle alone. We have a diplomatic strategy that is rallying the world to join in the fight against extremism. In Iraq, multinational forces are operating under a mandate from the United Nations - and we are working with Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the Gulf States to increase support for Iraq's government. The United Nations has imposed sanctions on Iran, and made it clear that the world will not allow the regime in Tehran to acquire nuclear weapons. With the other members of the Quartet - the UN, the European Union, and Russia - we are pursuing diplomacy to help bring peace to the Holy Land, and pursuing the establishment of a democratic Palestinian state living side-by-side with Israel in peace and security. In Afghanistan, NATO has taken the lead in turning back the Taliban and al Qaeda offensive - the first time the Alliance has deployed forces outside the North Atlantic area. Together with our partners in China, Japan, Russia, and South Korea, we are pursuing intensive diplomacy to achieve a Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons. And we will continue to speak out for the cause of freedom in places like Cuba, Belarus, and Burma - and continue to awaken the conscience of the world to save the people of Darfur.

American foreign policy is more than a matter of war and diplomacy. Our work in the world is also based on a timeless truth: To whom much is given, much is required. We hear the call to take on the challenges of hunger, poverty, and disease - and that is precisely what America is doing. We must continue to fight HIV/AIDS, especially on the continent of Africa - and because you funded our Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, the number of people receiving life-saving drugs has grown from 50,000 to more than 800,000 in three short years. I ask you to continue funding our efforts to fight HIV/AIDS. I ask you to provide $1.2 billion over five years so we can combat malaria in 15 African countries. I ask that you fund the Millennium Challenge Account, so that American aid reaches the people who need it, in nations where democracy is on the rise and corruption is in retreat. And let us continue to support the expanded trade and debt relief that are the best hope for lifting lives and eliminating poverty.

When America serves others in this way, we show the strength and generosity of our country. These deeds reflect the character of our people. The greatest strength we have is the heroic kindness, courage, and self sacrifice of the American people. You see this spirit often if you know where to look - and tonight we need only look above to the gallery. Dikembe Mutombo grew up in Africa, amid great poverty and disease. He came to Georgetown University on a scholarship to study medicine - but Coach John Thompson got a look at Dikembe and had a different idea. Dikembe became a star in the NBA, and a citizen of the United States. But he never forgot the land of his birth - or the duty to share his blessings with others. He has built a brand new hospital in his hometown. A friend has said of this good hearted man: "Mutombo believes that God has given him this opportunity to do great things." And we are proud to call this son of the Congo our fellow American.<

After her daughter was born, Julie Aigner-Clark searched for ways to share her love of music and art with her child. So she borrowed some equipment, and began filming children's videos in her basement. The Baby Einstein Company was born - and in just five years her business grew to more than $20 million in sales. In November 2001, Julie sold Baby Einstein to the Walt Disney Company, and with her help Baby Einstein has grown into a $200 million business. Julie represents the great enterprising spirit of America. And she is using her success to help others - producing child safety videos with John Walsh of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Julie says of her new project: "I believe it's the most important thing that I've ever done. I believe that children have the right to live in a world that is safe." We are pleased to welcome this talented business entrepreneur and generous social entrepreneur - Julie Aigner-Clark.

Three weeks ago, Wesley Autrey was waiting at a Harlem subway station with his two little girls, when he saw a man fall into the path of a train. With seconds to act, Wesley jumped onto the tracks ... pulled the man into a space between the rails ... and held him as the train passed right above their heads. He insists he's not a hero. Wesley says: "We got guys and girls overseas dying for us to have our freedoms. We got to show each other some love." There is something wonderful about a country that produces a brave and humble man like Wesley Autrey.

Tommy Rieman was a teenager pumping gas in Independence, Kentucky, when he enlisted in the United States Army. In December 2003, he was on a reconnaissance mission in Iraq when his team came under heavy enemy fire. From his Humvee, Sergeant Rieman returned fire - and used his body as a shield to protect his gunner. He was shot in the chest and arm, and received shrapnel wounds to his legs - yet he refused medical attention, and stayed in the fight. He helped to repel a second attack, firing grenades at the enemy's position. For his exceptional courage, Sergeant Rieman was awarded the Silver Star. And like so many other Americans who have volunteered to defend us, he has earned the respect and gratitude of our whole country.

In such courage and compassion, ladies and gentlemen, we see the spirit and character of America - and these qualities are not in short supply. This is a decent and honorable country - and resilient, too. We have been through a lot together. We have met challenges and faced dangers, and we know that more lie ahead. Yet we can go forward with confidence - because the State of our Union is strong ... our cause in the world is right ... and tonight that cause goes on.

2006-12-25T16:41:00.000-06:00

From The Mail Bag

2006-12-19T10:01:00.000-06:00

Web link that you should see:

http://patriotfiles.org/MilitaryChristmas.htm

While you and I are enjoying our Christmas with family and friends, our servicemen and women are spending the holidays on duty. Remember them. Pray for them.

Leahy Vows To Protect Terrorists

2006-12-13T13:40:00.000-06:00

In today's story by al Reuters Patrick Leahy says he will restore all privacy rights to US citizens that "the Bush administration is willing to pay for the cavalier way it is spawning new databanks."

Mr. Leahy has no idea what real privacy is (see leaky link.) I'm all for personal privacy rights as long as it doesn't lead to a terror attack. This kind of exception is already in practice people; it's called the Tarasoff law.

Assuming you've read the above, it only stands to reason that if psychologists are REQUIRED BY LAW to violate privacy laws to save the life of someone else, then the NSA wiretaps of terrorists carrying on conversations with people in America certainly fall into the same category. Every president in war time has done wiretaps, mail intercepts, etc., in order to fight their war. President Bush, THANK GOD, is no exception.

Leahy is an idiot if he thinks the American people will go with his twisted "logic."

2006-12-11T18:54:00.000-06:00

Why We Need A Strong Anti-Terror Policy: TERRORISTS IN ILLINOIS!!!

2006-12-08T17:00:00.000-06:00

I was just reviewing my Yahoo news and came across this little nugget.

So the big question is: Will the democrats controlling Chicago cut and run, or will they bring this terrorist to justice?

Perhaps we should wait until people like him DO blow up a few hand grenades in a mall somewhere, then we can prosecute.

Oh, wait a minute, that would create more terrorists.

That means we should just let him go, then, right?

What has Governor Daley done about all this? Impeach him!

What the....?

2006-12-08T13:21:00.000-06:00

Even though the first version of my blog is still able to load from www.maconcountyrepublican.blogspot.com, Blogger has evidently "lost" it, somehow. So, until that gets fixed, I'm setting up shop here for a little while.

UPDATE 12/8/07 13:45: It's GONE. Fooey. This is going to be fun. I guess this is my new permanent home, then.

Here's some political cartoons to keep you entertained: